welcome to jinaimachi town, tondabayashi, a historic district, japan

Let's take a walk around the historic district of Tondabayashi Jinaimachi.
Would you enjoy walking from Jinaimachi Visitor Center to the former Sugiyama
residence along Jyounomonsuji street?（in about 90 minutes）

As seen in traditional townhouses in Kyoto, the height of second floor is lower, which is a storeroom, as it was not a living space. In the Edo era, there
existed a hierarchy system and hierarchy of samurai warriors was classified
as the highest rank. Therefore, merchants were not supposed to overlook
from the second floor, while samurai warriors pass by.

After the Meiji era onwards, the second floor has the functions of the
living space and the height of second floor gradually became higher and
higher.

The street is 350m long from north to south and one of the "100 selections
of road of Japan. In Osaka Prefecture, the others have been selected as
the Midou-suji street in downtown Osaka city and Phoenix street in downtown
Sakai city.

The height of second floor of the three residences is compared and chronological
order can be easily found, such as the Shibuya’s residence, then across
the street, the Oda’s residence and the Abe’s residence. The Shibuya’s
residence with copper wall of green rust is the newest among the three,
which is a modern building of the Taisho era. The family had run a furniture
retail store until around the end of the Showa era. The Oda’s residence
was built in the Meiji era, and the Abe’s residence was built in the Edo
era in turn.

For landscape conservation, the gas meter device is placed inside the fence so that you can measure
it from the small window.

Viewing from here toward the east:
You can find the intersection had deliberately poor visibility as it is
referred to as a "hit and bent intersection" or “ atemage-no-tsuji”. It was designed to interfere with the enemy of the intrusion during the
Warring States Period when Jinaimachi town was built. It is now called
a "hit-and-run road" as a car is hard to go.

In the courtyard large earthenware pot for brewing mirin seasoning has
been left. Mirin seasoning was fermented and ripened to fill into the earthenware
pot in the ground. The large pot has been left in the coffee shop as it
has been buried in the ground.

The large pot has been left in the coffee shop as it has been buried in
the ground.

The Kuzuhara family flourished in the brewing industry. They did business
as "Totsukawa-ya". They began the brewing industry after they
came out of Totsukawa village in Nara prefecture. At the time, they produced
a liquor brand of "Tenkaichi Masamune". After the war, they have
been out of the business while tools and instruments still remain in the
house.

Latticed window with parent and child grid:
By thinning out the top of the grid, people can see outdoors from the room
of the building.

Renji mado (a kind of latticed window):
The style is used in the traditional buildings such as Buddhist temples
or Shinto shrines like Kasuga Grand Shrine in Nara. When you look through
the window while walking, the scenery through the window look like moving
as the principle of animation pictures.

The Buddha of Healing （Yakushi Nyorai）is laid in the small pavilion away from the precinct of Jyokokuji Buddhist Temple. It is a seated statue made of dry lacquer. It is friendly called as Koibumi
Yakushi or Buhhda of Love Letters. According to the ancient folklore, many
love letters of young men and women of the believers were laid up one after
another inside the Buddha statue, which were plastered by lacquer and then
gold leaf was finally coated on the surface.

The Tamori family used to be a wholesaler of cotton produced in Kawachi
region, doing business as Kuroyama-ya as they came from Kuroyama in Mihara
to Tondabayashi.

Along Jyounomon-suji street, the warehouses of the Tamori family residence are located including,
from the north to the south in turn, cotton storehouse, rice granary and
costume warehouse.

At the lower part of the wall of the cotton warehouse, the exterior wooden
panels of the wall used in cotton warehouse are called Yaki-ita made of
Japanese cedar. Yaki-ita literally means burnt-plate whose surface is carbonalized
for the durability. The roof-style of the rice granary is called Oki-Yane,
which looks like being just put on the building structure with some space
for air ventilation to make the heat inside discharged.

The Sugita family, in the Edo era, was engaged in wholesales of rapeseed
oil.

On the wall of the side of the roof, a ceramic doll of Shoki-san has been placed. I will tell you a legend on Shoki-san. When Emperor Xuanzong（玄宗皇帝）in the Tang Dynasty was sick, a demon appeared in his dream and the demon
was trying to steal the treasure of Emperor Xuanzong and Empress Yang Guifei（楊貴妃）, Shoki-san appeared, quickly drove away the demon. And then Emperor Xuanzong
was healed from disease. Shoki-san is a legendary and imaginary person.

Let me tell you another episode on Shoki-san.

A long time ago, there was a drug wholesaler in Sanjyo, Kyoto. The young
daughter of the drugstore had got in bed with a long illness some time.
Since the family business is drugstore, the parents gave her a variety
of drugs, but not at all well. The parents noticed that a large house had
been newly built up to the opposite of their own home and on the roof of
the new house, the ridge-end tile with demon face was put towards their
house, the parents put the tile doll of Shoki-san towards the demon. The
daughter is said to have healed from the disease immediately.

There certainly exists a demon (ridge-end tile)of the Tamori family residence on the opposite of the Sugita family residence,
and on the contrary, there also exists a Shoki's tile doll of the Tamori
family towards a demon (ridge-end tile) of the Sugita family each other.

Jinaimachi town, a part of Tondabayashi-cho located in Tonadabayashi city
has been chosen as a national conservation district of valuable traditional
buildings since 1997, which is only selected in Osaka Prefecture. Among
approximately 500 buildings in the town, 181 buildings built during the
period from the Edo era to the early Showa era have been identified as
traditional buildings.

An application for prior approval to the section of cultural properties
in board of education of Tondabayashi city is required when any change
of current exterior appearances viewed from a street in the conservation
district such as enlargement, renovation, repair, redecoration, change
of the color, new construction and demolition of any buildings is to be
made. After repairing works for the conservation of the exterior appearances,
the reconstruction and face-lifting in consideration of landscaping, a
white wall, a board fence, and a lattice door of traditional house remain
as used to be, and rustic and calm atmosphere has been kept as people still
live in those houses.

The signpost is provided with main traditional residences to explain each
origin and history, and those guiding signposts cum street lights have
been placed along the streets of stone-pavement.

In addition, the appearances of newly built buildings are also harmonized
with the neighboring historic district in consideration for the traditional
townscape in Jinaimachi town.

LocationJinaimachi town, Tondabayashi city, a national historic preservation district
and heritage site of Japan, which is located in the south-eastern part
of Osaka prefecture, the western part of Japan

Directions to Jinaimachi town, Tondabayashi

It is a 10-minute walk from Tondabayashi Staion or the Tondabayashi Nishiguchi Station of Kintetsu Nagano line.

From Kansai International Airport Airport Limousine Bus service available bound for Kawachi Nagano Station.
(60 minutes) Please take Kintetsu railways from Kawachi Nagano to Tondabayashi.(15
minutes)

From JR Shinkasen Shin-Osaka station or
Osaka (Umeda) station
Please take Subway Midousuji line from Shin-Osaka station or Osaka (Umeda)
station to Tennoji Station. (20~30 minutes) Please change trains at Tennoji
and take Kintetsu railways from Abenobashi terminal to Tondabayashi. (30
minutes)

Koushouji Betsuin Temple is a temple of Jodo Shinshu School (Ikkoushuu School),
which became the center of the development and establishment of Jinaimachi
town in Tondabayashi . It has been popular as Mr. Gobo (Tondabayashi Gobo)
among the local residents.

During the Ouei period (1394-1412years) , the

incipient temple was opened in Ebitani village. In 1560, Shoushuu Shonin,
the 16th head priest of Koushouji Sect. in Kyoto dismantled the building
and reconstructed

it to the present location, adjacent to Ebitani village.

The temple gate looks toward the east andthe Jyounomon-suji street. Those buildings such as the bell tower, the drum tower, the main hall,
the reception hall and priest's quarters are set up and arranged.

The main gate has refined style and it became clear in a recent investigation
that the gate was further relocated from Koushouji temple in Kyoto, which
was originally said to be dismantled and reconstructed from one of the
gates at Fushimi castle in Kyoto.

Koushouji Betsuin Temple was designated as an important cultural property
of the country in 2014.

Road width is very narrow in Jinaimachi town. If traveling by car, please
use Tondabayashi Municipal east parking newly opened in February 2014 (Toll
parking).

You can park the minibus for groups and passenger cars for general use.
Only one parking lot available for minibus, you must book it in advance
with Tondabayashi City Hall. A 15-minute walk to the Jinaimachi Visitor
Center and 5 minute walk up to the former Sugiyama family house, an important
national cultural property.

You will note that you will contact Tondabayashi Municipality Office for
a parking lot of large tourist bus for groups. Thank you in advance for
your kind cooperation.